Cloth and Pins
by Symphoniafan
Summary: 'His turn' she said. Now Kratos faces a challenge he was never prepared for.


**More of my 'fun' memories to force onto Kratos. **

**And it's raining again today. Hmm...'Listening to Numb by Linkin Park' Love this song. **

Disclaimer: Namco owns Tales of Symphonia.

**Cloth and Pins**

Their eyes met. Both silent and serious. Both anticipating the coming events with eagerness and repulsion. Father and son, about to cross a boundary that would connect them in a way like never before, the final step to bond them in an irreplaceable relationship. Neither knowing what would come of the experience nor how it would affect their lives. It was a serious matter.

Dark, curious eyes watched their father, as he seemed caught between indecision of how to proceed. It was a simple matter, of course, but for someone like Kratos Aurion, this task was like nothing he had ever experienced before. He was a master of the blade, once a knight for a royal family of Tethe'alla, an ancient hero that survived thousands of years of manipulation and death. One of the four seraphim that altered the structure of the world and only now had he possibly reached his greatest adversary.

Of course, the state of his son allowed him time to consider where he stood in this challenge. Lloyd, only a couple feet long, lay on his back and watched his father silently. Little fingers clenched and opened, grasping at the air and his round little legs slid and kicked out gently, unconsciously exploring his motorized movements. A deep brown coloration had been filling in his dark eyes now and Kratos couldn't help but notice the resemblance they held to his wife's.

Lloyd's little mouth opened and a trickle of drool dribbled onto his lips as he fluttered his tongue, creating a series of unintelligible sounds. The eyes still regarded his father.

Kratos was delaying of course. Irritation simmered as he watched his son, recalling the way Anna had thrust Lloyd into his arms and proclaimed it his turn.

His turn...How could she expect him to deal with this. He knew absolutely nothing about this concept. Realizing he was a father was challenging enough in itself, but it was easy enough to accept. These responsibilities, however, left him feeling helpless and foreign.

Growing bored with the lack of action, Lloyd reached up with his grabby hands and Kratos gently placed his fingers in the needy hands. Lloyd babbled contently for a moment, and then proceeded to grunt and 'talk' as Anna called, though he said nothing remotely close to words, in Kratos' opinion.

With a heavy sigh and a sense that the ordeal was inescapable, Kratos removed his finger from his son's grip and lowered them down to unfasten the pins holding the single piece of cloth around his son's waist. The pins were infuriatingly small compared to Kratos' large fingers, but he managed to remove them with only half a dozen jabs to his fingertips.

Lloyd, realizing something was happening, wriggled all the more intensely. Kratos struggled to keep the squirming baby from rolling off the table as he searched for a fresh cloth. After securing it, he attempted to recall his wife's instruction. Apparently, he needed to keep his son covered at all times, unless Kratos wanted a 'big mess' as Anna had put it, one Kratos was certain, Anna wouldn't help him clean up if it did occur.

Struggling with lifting his son's legs, removing the wet cloth and placing the fresh one in the proper position could be described as nothing but infuriating. It was practically impossible and it didn't help, that Lloyd was constantly moving as well. Did that boy ever lay still?

Somehow, and he wasn't sure how, Kratos managed to juggle the impossible feat, without letting his son roll off the counter, or encountering the 'big mess' much to his relief.

Lloyd babbled twisting to reach for bottles on the shelf and Kratos slid his son out of their reach. Kratos recalled he was also supposed to clean him off. That part wasn't particularly hard.

The next part however...

Kratos glared at the irritating pins on the shelf. Why were they so blasted small? This could be the perfect example as to why this was a woman's job and not a man's. The materials were made for small fingers. Women's fingers. How was he supposed to handle those tiny objects without jabbing his son and himself?

He glanced at the door, but knew he'd never maintain his dignity if he called for his wife. This whole ordeal was exasperating and Kratos would be thankful when it was over.

Sighing, he fumbled for the small pins, jabbing himself only once as he opened them and only three times more while trying to slip them through the cloth. Lloyd, in the meantime, lay quietly, watching his father curse and glare at the little metal objects. He giggled a couple of times, when his father cursed particularly loud.

It was safe to say that Kratos managed to avoid pricking his son, which he suppose was a positive aspect. At least he'd managed to do that right. Satisfied that the cloth would not slip off, Kratos ignored his numb, sore fingertips and lifted his son, deposited the wet cloth and left the room.

Anna was sitting on the couch, reading, smiling to herself. Kratos figured she wasn't actually reading, but had been listening intently to his ordeal in the back room. She looked up as he walked in and stood, closing the book.

"All done I see."

Lloyd gurgled happily, reaching for his mother and Anna took him. Kratos lowered his hands quickly, attempting to hide his obvious utter defeat against the pins and frowned. "Yes, it's done."

Anna smiled and bounced Lloyd. "Now that wasn't too bad, now was it, Kratos? Much easier than most of the stuff you have to do."

Kratos considered, for a moment, arguing that point, but again, it was a matter of his pride. If he was to admit changing his son was more difficult than stabbing a man in the chest, he was sure Anna would laugh at him.

"If you say so." He'd settle for the neutral ground. Not admitting and not agreeing.

Anna smiled. It was the smile for when Kratos knew she saw through his facade. Still he wasn't about to buckle down and admit it. He had done what she had asked and it was over with...

Turning, Anna walked with Lloyd toward the kitchen. "Well that's good. Now that you have experience, I'll let you upgrade next time."

Kratos frowned. "Upgrade?"

Anna glanced back over her shoulder, smiling devilishly. "Of course, practice makes perfect. You have to apply yourself to all sorts of fields. Just like in training."

"I hardly think you can advance in changing diapers, Anna," Kratos argued suspiciously. He felt as if he had just walked into a trap. After all, he was inexperienced in this field...

"Oh, trust me, Kratos. You can advance. Lloyd was only wet this time, after all."

Kratos didn't like the way she laughed as she disappeared into the kitchen.

****As a side note, I am still working on my stories, but it's slow and summer wasn't as cooperative as it could have been and slightly stressful. So for those wondering, yes, there will be updates once I get settled back in the city for university. Sorry for the wait. **

**Review Please.**


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